COMPANY NEWS

The Atlantic Steel Company said yesterday that its directors, who control less than 20 percent of the company's stock, would support an offer of $40 a share, or nearly $52 million, from Ivaco Ltd., a Canadian steel producer.

The Atlanta‐based company said that 11 of its 13 directors attending special board meeting had voted to submit their own stock in response to the offer.

Atlantic said that sales last year rose 35 percent to $175 million, while profits climbed more than eightfold to $4.6 million from $553,000. First‐quarter profits, meanwhile, nearly doubled to $1.2 million. Ivaco, of Marieville, Quebec, ‐operates 27 plants, with 13 in the United States.

Although only 2,700 shares of Atlantic traded in the over‐the‐counter market yesterday, its market price jumped 21 points to 37.

The Bank of Virginia Company said it had entered into a tentative agreement with Banca March, a Spanish commercial bank, for Banca March to invest $16.5 million in common stock and convertible preferred stock in the Bank of Virginia.

It said the common stock would be purchased at book value for a total price of about $12.2 million and the preferred stock for about $4.3 million.

If certain regulatory conditions are met, Banca March also will advance an additional $3.5 million to convert the preferred stock and the entire investment then will be represented by common stock purchased at book value, Bank of Virginia said.

Bank of Virginia also said Banca March officials had said they had no interest in controlling the Bank of Virginia, seeking only a 15 percent ownership.

Sunshine Mining, Hunt End Litigation

The Sunshine Mining Company, Kellogg, Idaho, and the Hunt International Resources Corporation — announced from Hunt's headquarters in Dallas the dismissal, pursuant to a previously announced agreement, of all remaining litigation between the two companies and their affiliates.

The two companies announced the dismissal of four lawsuits filed in the state district courts in Dallas County, Tex., resolving claims by each company or its officers against the other concern and its management. The suits were generated by attempts by Hunt to take over Sunshine.

In a related development, Hunt said an individual stockholder had filed suit in Delaware seeking to halt a previously‐announced merger proposal by N. Bunker Hunt and W. Herbert Hunt.

S.E.C. Thwarted On Saudi Records

By The Associated Press

A Federal judge thwarted an attempt by the Securities and Exchange Commission to subpoena records of the Saudi Arabian Airlines Corporation in connection with its purchase of jet planes from Page Airways Inc. of Rochester. In a ruling issued yesterday in United States District Court in Manhattan, Judge John M. Cannella granted a motion by Saudi Arabian Airlines to quash the subpoena.

The subpoena was issued by the S.E.C. last April 25 in connection with its civil suit against Page Airways in the Federal Court for the Western Dis‐. trict. The S.E.C. suit was based on claims that “corrupt, illegal, improper or unaccountable payments” were made between 1975 and 1977 in connection with the sale of four Gulfstream II aircraft to Saudi Arabian Airlines.

Judge Cannella based his decision to quash the subpoena on a finding that it was improperly served. He said he saw no reason to go into the complex legal question of whether or not a foreign corporation could be forced to comply with a subpoena to produce documents from within its own nation's borders.

Keuffel‐Laser Deal

The Keuffel & Esser Company, a producer of surveying equipment, announced that as a result of its recent tender offer, it now owns at least 2,920,000 shares—or more than 90 percent—of the 3,216,635 outstanding shares of its subsidiary, Laser Systems and Electronics Inc. The company also said it planned to merge Laser into K.&E. on or about the end of June.

Mesa Petroleum Cited on Securities

The Utah Securities Commission has issued an order charging the Mesa Petroleum Company with violating state securities laws stemming from Mesa's purchase of 5.7 percent of the Equity Oil Company's outstanding shares.

Equity announced late last week that it had learned that Mesa and persons affiliated with it had acquired 166,300 shares of Equity.

Paul Geerlings, director of the Utah commission, said Mesa had violated state securities laws by failing to provide Utah shareholders with information regarding its Equity stock acquistion prior to the event. “They [Mesa] made the disclosure after they acquired the stock,” Mr. Geerlings said, adding that the commission has subpoened information pertaining to the purchase.

A spokesman for Mesa said the company had no comment on the allegations.

The Utah commission also asked the Securities and Exchange Commission to stop trading in Equity's stock in the over‐the‐counter market until the public has a change to evaluate some Equity gas drilling information.

Colonial Considering A Rights Offering

The Colonial Commercial Corpora. tion said it was considering a nontransferrable rights offering of the stock of a subsidiary to shareholders of Colonial Commercial.

However, Bernard Korn, chairman, said his company had been advised that such a listing of a rights offering was against current policy of the American Stock Exchange. Colonial said it would ask for a waiver of the policy, but has no assurance the request will be granted.

Colonial’ Commercial is seeking to develop a casino‐hotel complex in Atlantic City. The King International Corporation, which earlier reached an agreement in principle to be acquired by Colonial, said yesterday in a separate announcement that it had acquired an option on an Atlantic City site for a casino‐hotel complex.

Seaboard Chairman Backs Chessie Deal

WASHINGTON, June 25 (AP) —The chairman of Seaboard Coast Line Inc. testified today that a merger of his company with the Chessie System Inc. would make the railroads more efficient and benefit their customers

Prime F. Oborn, chairman and chief executive officer of Seaboard, was the lead‐off witness at hearings before David H. Allard, an administrative law judge for the Interstate Commerce Commission. A final I.C.C. decision on the merger request is expected to take at least two years.

The merger would result in the nation's largest rail network, covering 22 states, the District of Columbia and Ontario, Canada.

Mr. Osborn said the two systems wanted to consolidate “in order to be more effective in preserving essential rail services, so as to experience the efficiencies, savings and service improvements indicated in our applications, and for the purpose of increasing the railroads’ share of the intercity transportation market.”

Systron and Unit Of Thorn in Accord

The Systron‐Donner Corporation, manufacturer of measurement and control instruments, and an American subsidiary of Thorn Electrical Industries of London have reached a definitive agreement to merge, said George H. Bruns Jr., chairman of Systron‐Donner.

The proposed merger provides that each outstanding share of Systron‐Donner will be converted into the right to receive $15 in cash. Based on the number of Systron‐Donner shares outstanding, the total value of the transaction would be about $27 million. SystranDonner said Thorn also planned to make cash purchases of Systron‐Donner shares on the open market and possibly in private transactions.

Systron‐Donner, based in Concord, Calif., said that it would maintain its current management and exisiting sites. It added that the transaction was subject to approval by shareholders and other conditions. The merger already has been approved by the boards of both companies.

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